Cake & Sympathy
by derangedperson
Summary: Set in the MLP: FIM universe.  An accident at a party for Twilight leaves Pinkie with some stitches and Fluttershy feeling responsible.  Pinkie/Fluttershy friendship.  Rated T for slight blood.
1. Party Time

Twilight Sparkle strolled through the streets of Ponyville, making her way towards Sugarcube Corner. As usual, Pinkie Pie had invited her to her latest party, and insisted that she show up at four o'clock sharp. Glancing at the clock tower revealed that Twilight had ten minutes to make it to the sweet shop, and the last thing she wanted was to leave Pinkie hanging. _I'd better pick up the pace if I want to get there on time, _she thought as she moved from a stroll to a brisk trot. As she made her way through town, she noticed that the streets, bustling and full of life on any given day, were all but deserted. A stray tumbleweed blew across her path just to embellish this oddness. And while it may have been odd, Twilight wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

It had been a year since she and Spike first arrived in Ponyville, her initial hesitance and awkwardness melting away with help from her friends. As she drew closer to Pinkie's house, Twilight couldn't help but smile at the memories-Rainbow Dash pulling off the Sonic Rainboom, Fluttershy giving that dragon what for, Rarity's dresses she made them for the Gala, Applejack's willingness to always lend a helping hand, and, of course, Pinkie's parties. Numerous and neverending, she always marveled at how her cheerful mood never wavered (except for that freak occurrence with her surprise birthday party) and at her ability to maintain a maximum level of enjoyment at every party she threw. The old cliche proved true in this case: when it came to throwing parties, Pinkie Pie was a force of nature.

When she got close enough to Sugarcube Corner, Twilight could hear muffled music coming from the shop, the initial sound a lot louder than Pinkie's turntable. Puzzled, the purple pony opened the door to reveal an epic party underway, balloons and streamers everywhere and packed to capacity with everypony in town in attendance. Scanning the room revealed that DJ P0N-3 was behind the throbbing cadence she heard on her way in, and it was a darned catchy cadence at that, evidenced by the fact that Rainbow Dash, Rarity and even Fluttershy were dancing to it. Twilight smiled and headed upstairs, chuckling as she caught sight of Spike singing "Everypony Needs Somepony To Love" on a karaoke machine. Three tables were set up and filled with sweets, punch and snacks of all kinds, and when Applejack went to grab another glass of punch, Twilight went to join her.

"What's the occasion?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, hey, Twilight!" Applejack said, putting her glass down. "You made it with two minutes to spare! How ya doin', sugarcube?"

"Great! It looks like Pinkie really pulled out all the stops for this one!"

"She sure did, didn't she? It's almost time for her speech, so let's get movin'!"

"Speech? What speech?"

Applejack smiled and replied, "You'll see."


	2. Heady Matters

Spike hopped on Twilight's back as the duo headed back downstairs just as DJ P0N-3 finished her set. She thanked the crowd and introduced the master of ceremonies, Pinkie Pie. The pink pony bounced up on stage and was handed the microphone; the first thing she did was thank DJ for the performance with a loud scream of her name. Everypony cheered as Twilight and Applejack joined their friends near the front of the stage, exchanging greetings and well wishes.

"And now for the reason I invited you all here!" The lights dimmed, leaving only a solitary spotlight shining on Pinkie as she began to speak, with P0N-3 providing background music.

"Mares and colts, the reason you're here is to help celebrate a super-duper-special occasion. There's somepony in this crowd who's lived in Ponyville for a year today, and that person is..."

Pinkie pointed her free hoof towards Twilight. "...YOU! Come on up here!"

More than a bit embarrassed that she was being singled out (even though it was true), Twilight hesitated before Rarity encouraged her with a gentle, "It'll be fine." Steeling herself for anything, she stepped up on stage to applause and some enthusiastic whistling from Spike.

"Pinkie Pie, what's this all about?" Twilight asked.

"Well, on behalf of all my friends and I, I'd just like to say..." P0N-3 began to play a lively musical melody as Pinkie began to sing.

_"Thank you for your kindness and your ever-giving heart  
>I knew that we would be good buddies from the very start<br>Always helping, always smiling, always there to lend a hoof  
>A friend through thick and thin and we can't stress this enoof<br>You're the bestest friend we've ever had, the truest of the true  
>And so I dedicate this party, all of this, to you<br>And while this song is nearly over, there's just one thing left to see..."_

When Pinkie sang the last line, two stagehooves wheeled a massive cake out to a cascade of oohs and aahs from the audience. Decked in purple fondant with her cutie mark design around the outer edges and stacked five layers high, it was one of the biggest cakes Twilight had ever seen. With a flourish, Pinkie concluded her song:

_"Twilight, happy one-year friendship anniversary!"_

As the crowd broke into cheers and applause, Twilight smiled and lowered her head. Pinkie came to her side and asked, "So, what do you think?"

The purple pony looked back up with tears in her eyes and said, "Pinkie, I...I don't know what to say. This is one of the nicest things anypony's ever done for me."

"You don't have to say anything, silly! Your reaction said it for you! And everypony else has something to say, too-girls, Spike, come on up!" The rest of her friends came up on stage and offered their kind words as Pinkie went to cut the cake.

Rainbow Dash put her hoof over Twilight's shoulder and said, "Nopony deserves this more than you. It's been awesome having you as a friend."

"Most definitely," Rarity added. "Ponies like you come along once in a lifetime."

"Knowing you has been one of the greatest joys of my life," Applejack beamed. "And I don't say that lightly."

"Every day I'm around you is worth it," Spike said. "It's an honor to be your number one assistant."

"You're a joy to be with and a true friend," Fluttershy said. "Don't ever let anypony tell you otherwise."

The only way Twilight could respond to her friends' kindness was with a small "Oh..." as she tried to keep her composure. Rainbow Dash gave a silent motion to the group to come in closer, and they gave Twilight a big group hug to a round of cheers from the crowd. After they broke their embrace, Pinkie returned to cutting the cake as her friends talked with one another. Her cheerful mood, however, was not to last, for as she finished cutting the cake, her tail began to twitch. Pinkie felt it immediately and her eyes widened in alarm.

"Oh, _no._ Not today, _please_ not today," she whispered to herself. She tried her best to put the premonition out of her mind as her friends came over to help serve the cake to the audience. Twilight's magic helped guide the individual pieces onto the plates, and the plates were arranged by the group on a table near the stage.

"The cake is ready," Pinkie announced. "One plate per pony, please!"

As the audience helped themselves to the treat, Pinkie sighed with relief. Maybe her Pinkie sense went off at the wrong time. The cake had been served without incident, the party was bouncing and full of life, and everything was going well. But as soon as she started walking, her tail began to twitch again. She tried her best to hide it behind her flank as Fluttershy approached her.

"I saw your tail twitching earlier, Pinkie. Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine-false alarm," she said, although there was no confidence in her words. Something was coming, and she knew it.

"Do you need help with anything?"

"Um...I don't think so. Everything's taken care of over here..."

"Okay." As Fluttershy turned and began to leave the stage, Pinkie caught sight of a bump in the carpeting. She tried to warn Fluttershy to watch out, but it was too late-she had failed to notice it and her left hooves were tripped up. She let out a startled yell as she began to fall, which caught the attention of everypony in the room. Pinkie rushed to grab her before she hurt herself, but Fluttershy's right rear leg careened into her gut, knocking her off balance and sending her tumbling off the stage towards the cake table. Everypony gasped as Pinkie's head struck the corner of the table, opening up a gash in her forehead as she crumpled to the ground. Within seconds her friends were at her side, asking if she was okay. The pink pony got up and assured everyone she was okey-dokey-lokey, but the blood trickling down her mane suggested otherwise.

Her friends cringed at the sight as Rainbow Dash exclaimed, "Pinkie, we need to get you to a hospital!"

"Don't be silly, silly! It's not that bad!"

"Not that bad?" Rarity gasped. "Pinkie, you're bleeding! You might even need stitches!"

Pinkie touched her hoof to her forehead and looked at it to find it was all but covered in her blood. Her heart sank as she realized how bad she was hurt, and that her Pinkie sense-again-hadn't let her down. Twilight grabbed a towel and pressed it to her forehead, securing it with another towel tied around her head as she climbed on Rainbow Dash's back. As she flew towards Johns Clopkins Hospital, her friends followed suit as Twilight grabbed the microphone and gave the bad news:

"Sorry, everypony. Party's over."


	3. Stitched

The waiting room at Johns Clopkins buzzed with activity as Fluttershy sat near the help desk, her head in her hooves. Even though it had been a half hour since Pinkie went to get taken care of, the yellow pegasus couldn't get her mind off of the sight of her friend's injury. Looking at Rainbow Dash revealed that her back had a couple of spots where Pinkie's blood had dripped onto her, the red standing out like a sore thumb amidst her light blue coat. The thud that occurred when her head hit the table was on endless replay in her head, and she felt like she was going to lose her lunch, which she very nearly did when Applejack and Twilight came back with some snacks from the cafeteria.

"You okay there, sugarcube?" Applejack asked.

"No...no I'm not. If it wasn't for me we wouldn't be here."

"Don't say that," Spike said. "It was an accident."

"It could've happened to anypony," Rainbow Dash added. "I'm sure Pinkie's gonna be fine and back to her old self in no time." As soon as she finished her sentence, the blue pegasus' face paled as she realized what that could mean.

Twilight put her hoof over Fluttershy's back, smiled, and said, "It's nothing to worry about. Just try and take your mind off of it."

"I can't, Twilight! That noise when her head hit the table...the blood...your party...it's just...it's..." Tears flowed down her face as she cried into Twilight's shoulder, the purple pony doing her best to comfort her as Rarity assured her everything was fine.

"It's okay, Fluttershy," Rarity whispered. She grabbed a muffin from the tray on Applejack's back and offered it to her friend, with Fluttershy gingerly taking it from her and nibbling on it in small intervals.

"Do you need anything else?" Twilight asked.

Fluttershy sniffled and replied, "Just...just stay here for a while." Everypony complied and moved close by her to calm her down. However, the calm was short lived as the door to the patient area opened with Pinkie bounding out, leaving a trail of streamers and balloons in her wake. Her doctor was behind her, a stoic expression on his face. Pinkie bounded up to her friends with a big smile on hers, asking, "Why the long faces, everypony?"

They all screamed her name and ran to hug her, expressing relief that she was okay. Fluttershy kept repeating "I'm so sorry" over and over again as Pinkie returned the hugs before the doctor gave his diagnosis.

"Well girls, there's nothing to worry about," he said. "The flesh wound took five stitches to close, but that was the extent of her injuries. We also performed a concussion test, and it came back negative."

"Hey Rarity, did you hear that? Now I'm stitched up like one of your dresses!" Pinkie removed the bandage covering them and showed her stitches to the white unicorn, her forehead inches from Rarity's face. "See?"

Rarity cringed and tried to look away while saying, "Oh! Of...of course you are! And a cross-stitch too! Fancy that!"

"Yeah! Aren't they neat?" She whirled around to show them to the rest of her friends, and they all tried to look away as they assured her that yes, they were very neat. The doctor cleared his throat, drawing their attention back to him.

"As I was saying, your friend is going to be just fine. Just make sure to rub some ointment on those stitches every day so they don't get infected, okay?"

"Okey-dokey-lokey!"

The doctor turned to her friends and said, "She has quite the personality. It must be fun having her around."

"Oh, it's certainly _interesting_, Doctor..." said Twilight, trailing off as she looked at his nametag. "...Dr. Horse."

"Never a dull moment with Pinkie Pie," Rainbow Dash chimed in.

"So...so we can go?" Fluttershy asked.

"Certainly," Dr. Horse replied. "I'll just get her a new bandage and everything will be set."

* * *

><p>It was a relief to be on the way back to Ponyville. The initial worry over Pinkie's condition had evolved into a round of laughter and good times as the girls laughed along with Pinkie at what had happened. The only one who wasn't laughing, however, was Fluttershy. She hung a bit further back from the group until everyone slowed down and stopped when she blurted out, "I'm sorry, but I don't know why everyone is laughing."<p>

"We're laughing because Pinkie's back to her old self," Twilight answered. "Like I said, it was nothing to worry about."

"You don't have to worry about me, Fluttershy," Pinkie said. "I'm all fixed up and ready to party!"

"But you're hurt! I don't want anything like that to happen to you again! If it did, I would never forgive myself!"

"Accidents happen," Rarity said. "You're not at fault in any of this."

"Are you...sure?"

Pinkie smiled and beamed, "Sure she's sure, silly! And I'm sure sure too! Now turn that frown upside down and show me your smile!" Her enthusiasm was always infectious, and this was no exception as a small grin formed on Fluttershy's face.

"That's better! Now let's get back home!" As the group continued back to Ponyville, the sun set over the horizon as the stars and moon began to appear in the sky. They reached the village limits shortly before eight o'clock, at which point the group went their separate ways towards their homes. Pinkie returned to Sugarcube Corner and began to clean up the mess from Twilight's party when she heard a knock at the door.

"Now who'd be knocking at this hour?" she wondered to herself. Opening the door, Pinkie gasped in surprise at who was standing before her.

"Luna...?"


	4. Friends Helping Friends

Owlowicious flew into Twilight and Spike's room and acted as an alarm clock, hooting until they woke up. The two of them had gone straight to bed after coming home from the hospital last night, and now that they were fully rested, they awoke and headed downstairs, ready for another day. This time, however, they were greeted by Pinkie Pie bouncing around the library, a huge smile on her face and an extra spring in her step. Twilight asked, "Pinkie, how'd you get in here?"

"Through the door! How else would I get in here?"

She continued bouncing around the room as Spike gathered some books together. "You sure seem excited, Pinkie," he said. "What's the occasion?"

Pinkie stopped bouncing and lowered her head as if she were telling a secret. "You want to know?"

"Yes."

"Are you _sure_ you want to know?"

"Sure I'm sure."

"Are you _sure_ sure?"

"Yes, Pinkie, we're sure!" Twilight exclaimed. "What's the news?"

"Well, after I got back home I was cleaning up when I heard a knock on the door. I open it and LUNA, of all ponies, was standing there! I was like *GASP!* and she was like 'It's okay' and then I was like 'Are you sure?' and she was like 'Yes' and I was like 'Really?' and she was like-"

"PINKIE!"

"Oh...sorry. Anyway, just like it was your one-year friendship anniversary, this is Luna's one-year back to normal anniversary! She came to my house last night and asked me to throw a party for her in Canterlot!"

The scene shifted to the square in the middle of Ponyville as her friends all gasped in surprise at the revelation. "No...way!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"Yes way! The party's tomorrow night, and I bet most of Equestria is going to be there! This is going to be great!"

"What do you have planned?" Applejack asked.

"Well, I got DJ P0N-3 to sign on, and Octavia's orchestra will be there too! Princess Celestia will probably give a speech, and there'll be singing and dancing and music all night!"

"Awesome! Sounds like a blast!"

Gummy popped out of her basket with six invitations in his mouth. "And of course, you're all invited!"

As her friends took the invitations and assured Pinkie they would be there, she noticed that Fluttershy hadn't taken hers. In the chorus of voices, Pinkie had noticed Fluttershy's was absent, and looking over the side of the group brought her the sight of the yellow pegasus walking back towards the Everfree Forest, her head hung low. A look of concern and sadness spread across her face, and she said, "Girls, I hate to beat a retreat, but I've got something I need to take care of. See you later!"

Pinkie dashed off towards the forest, leaving Rainbow Dash to ask, "How exactly _do_ you beat a retreat, anyway?"

Everypony stared at her with more than a slight tinge of awkwardness before Twilight said, "Sounds like Pinkie's rubbing off on you, Rainbow Dash."

Dash's face fell as she realized what she had said. "Oh, _Celestia!_"

* * *

><p>"Fluttershy! It's Pinkie! Open up!"<p>

Pinkie knocked on the door to Fluttershy's house, hoping her friend would answer. All she got back in return, however, was dead silence. She tried again, to no avail. She raised her hoof to knock a third time when she felt a tap on her back, turning around to find Angel Bunny standing behind her.

"Oh, hi, Angel! Is Fluttershy home?"

The rabbit nodded his head.

"Is she okay?"

He shook his head "no" and mimed crying and a ticking watch.

"Oh...that doesn't sound good at all. Can I go in?"

Angel hopped from the ground to her back to the doorknob, turning it and allowing Pinkie entrance. He gave her a good luck salute as she walked into the house, making her way upstairs to Fluttershy's bedroom. The door to her room was ajar, giving Pinkie enough room to glance inside and see her on her bed, crying softly. The pink pony entered with caution and asked, "Fluttershy? What's wrong?"

There was no answer.

"Fluttershy, please don't do this. What's bothering you?"

Bitterness laced Fluttershy's voice as she answered, "Luna never showed up at your house last night."

"Wha...of course she did! Why would you say that?"

"You just needed an excuse to throw another party because I ruined Twilight's! Admit it!"

Pinkie was stunned. She sat down beside her and said, "No...no, that's not the case at all! You didn't ruin anything!"

"YES, I DID!"

"Fluttershy..."

"I know how much time and effort you put into your parties, and to wreck one like that-"

"Fluttershy, _that's enough!_" The firmness in Pinkie's voice gave the yellow pegasus pause as she turned to look at her friend. Pinkie's face was stern yet sympathetic as she continued to talk.

"For the thirtieth time, _you didn't do anything wrong._ Accidents happen, and we can't predict when they do. Everypony that was there can tell you the same thing."

Fluttershy sniffled and looked away as she said, "But I hurt you. I can still see and hear your head hitting the table in my mind, and the blood..."

Pinkie's face softened. "Is that what this is all about?"

Her friend nodded her head.

"Oh, Fluttershy, that's in the past. I got my head put back together at the hospital and there's nothing to worry about."

"If I hadn't been so clumsy..."

"There was a bump in the carpeting. I saw it when you were leaving the stage." Pinkie got up and walked around the bed so she was facing Fluttershy. "When I saw how bad I was hurt, I felt the same way you do now."

"You did?"

"Yep. I was ready to throw a big ol' pity party until I realized that dwelling on what happened would do me no good. You can't beat yourself up over something you had no control over. You just need to leave what you saw and heard in the past and move on."

"How do I do that?"

"Well...maybe you need to do something to help you take your mind off it. Do you want to help me bake some goodies for the party?"

Fluttershy smiled and replied, "Sure...um, if that's okay with you."

Pinkie smiled back and said, "Of course it is. Now give your auntie Pinkie Pie a hug."

The yellow pegasus obliged, a smile spread across her face. Pinkie squeezed her tight and said, "Don't forget your invitation!" Almost on cue, Gummy appeared on her shoulder, Fluttershy's invite in his mouth. She took it and asked, "When do you want me to come by?"

"Anytime!"

"If that's the case, is it okay if I go now?"

Pinkie gasped and said, "Of course! Let's get bakin'!" The duo walked back to Ponyville, Fluttershy's spirits lifted and Pinkie's at their normal level of exuberance. Pinkie hummed a peppy melody as she bounded down the road, with Fluttershy bobbing her head in time with the music. Maybe things had turned around after all.


	5. Baking Up A Storm

Mr. and Mrs. Cake looked up as the bell above Sugarcube Corner's door announced the arrival of a customer. Husband and wife prepared to greet their guest when they realized it was Pinkie and Fluttershy that had walked in. Mr. Cake came out from behind the counter, exclaiming, "Pinkie! Welcome back!"

"It's good to be back, Mr. Cake!"

"I see you brought a friend with you."

"Sure did! I brought my friend Fluttershy to help me bake some stuff for Luna's party!"

"Perfect! Fluttershy, let me show you around..." The Cakes led Fluttershy into the kitchen, showcasing the various pieces of equipment she would be using. She let out a small "Oh, my" as the tour progressed, her nerves rising ever so slightly as she got a good look at the utensils, mixers, mashers and bakers. Fluttershy had a feeling that there was going to be a lot to learn, but this was a bit more than a lot.

"Um...excuse me," she said.

"What is it, dear?" Mrs. Cake asked.

"I can bake okay, but I've never baked this much."

"It's okay, silly!" Pinkie said. "With our help, you'll be the boss of baking!"

"Pinkie, dear, before you start," Mrs. Cake said, "you should check on your stitches."

The pink pony bounded into the restroom on her suggestion and tended to her wound, applying the ointment and affixing a new bandage to her head. She washed her hooves and came back into the kitchen, asking, "Ready for some fun, Fluttershy?"

"Sure...I guess."

"Okey dokey lokey! Let's get started!"

* * *

><p>Fluttershy and Pinkie opened one of the massive recipe books to a page containing the instructions on how to make Moon Pie Cupcakes. The idea and the end product sounded delicious to the both of them: chocolate-flavored cupcakes with a frosting moon design on top, vanilla cream in the middle.<p>

"Have you made these before, Pinkie?"

"Nope, but I've seen the Cakes make them dozens of times! If they can make it that often, I'm sure it'll be easy peasy!"

"Okay...if you say so." They gathered the flour, cocoa mix, eggs, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and water that the recipe called for, measured everything out, and began to mix it together. Fluttershy smiled as she watched their work take shape, with Pinkie exclaiming, "Great job! That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"No, it really wasn't. I think maybe I could get the hang of this."

"Of course you can! Now let's-" Before Pinkie could finish her sentence, she bumped into the speed dial, knocking it from medium to the highest speed on the machine. Before either pony could react, cupcake batter began to fly all over the work area and onto their faces, covering them in chocolate. Pinkie licked all of it off her face with one swoop of her tongue while Fluttershy wiped her eyes with her hooves and let out a small giggle.

"Oops...looks like I made a booboo," Pinkie said.

"That's okay. Accidents happen."

Pinkie grinned from ear to ear upon hearing Fluttershy reply with that statement. _She gets it,_ Pinkie thought as she touched her hoof to her bandage. "Well, let's get this cleaned up. We've got a lot more stuff to make! Cake, cookies, candy-the works!"

Fluttershy's eyes widened at her exclamation. That was a tall order, but she knew in her heart of hearts that they could get it done. She poured a jug of vanilla cream into the injector and exclaimed, "Okay! Let's get bakin'!"


	6. It's Raining Cake

The spread at Luna's party was just as big as Twilight's, if not more so. Pinkie, Fluttershy and the Cakes had managed to make not only Moon Pie Cupcakes but chocolate chip cookies, turtles, apple turnovers, cotton candy, and a host of other sweets. Their friends stood in awe at the sight of it, Twilight exclaiming, "You guys did all of this by yourselves?"

"Well, kind of," Fluttershy answered. "The Cakes helped us with some of the harder recipes."

Pinkie exclaimed, "It was a super fun time! Hopefully you and I can do it again, Baking Master!" Fluttershy blushed and mumbled, "Oh, gee..."

"How's your head, Pinkie?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Still on my shoulders and feelin' fine!"

Dash laughed and said, "No, I mean your stitches!"

"Oh, they're fine too! They should be coming out in a few weeks, but other than that, I'm super duper!"

A regal voice piped in and said, "And we wouldn't want it any other way, Pinkie."

Princess Celestia and Luna approached the group, with the six of them bowing before them in respect. "I understand Fluttershy had some strong feelings afterwards."

"Oh yes, Princess," the yellow pegasus said. "I felt like it was my fault Pinkie got hurt, and I couldn't get it out of my mind."

"Believe me, child, I know how that feels. When Luna was possessed by the Nightmare, there was a long, long period of time where I lay awake at night, wondering how I could have let such a thing happen to my sister. But, like you, I had no way of knowing what would happen, but I knew that things would get better one day..." She put her hoof over Luna, drawing her into a sisterly embrace. "...and they have."

Luna lovingly nuzzled Celestia and smiled. "Pinkie Pie, I just wanted to thank you again for getting this together on such short notice. We're all having a wonderful time."

"Anytime is party time, Luna! It's a pleasure! Oh, and wait till you see the cake! It's gonna blow your mind!"

Almost on cue, two stagehooves pushed out a gigantic cake decorated with dark purple and blue frosting, tiny moons embedded in the outer perimiters of the six layers. Two small buttercream figures of Luna and Celestia stood atop the cake, which elicited a round of oohs and aahs from the crowd.

Luna exclaimed, "Wow! That's an impressive cake! Do you mind if I have a piece?"

"Of course not! It's your party, so go right ahead!"

Luna took the cake trowel and began to cut some pieces for her and Celestia. Pinkie watched and smiled, but her smile turned to a frown as she felt her tail begin to twitch. Her friends noticed and Rarity asked, "What's your Pinkie sense telling you this time?"

"I don't know...something about a...cake shower."

"Cake shower?" Applejack exclaimed. "What on Equestria is a 'cake-'"

As Applejack asked her question, Luna had put two pieces of cake onto a set of plates and was preparing to walk back to Celestia. She had turned around when her rear hooves got tangled up in the carpeting and she lost her balance. Acting on instinct, she reached out for the nearest solid object...which turned out to be the cake cart. Her outstretched hooves hit the tray at full force, launching the cake into the air. Rarity screamed and stepped off to the side as the cake rained down on Celestia and her friends. Luna gasped in fright and rushed over to the chocolatey carnage, yelling, "Are you alright? Is everypony alright?"

The only response she got was a round of laughter from the cake's victims, but it was friendly laughter. Twilight wiped the frosting from her eyes and said, "We're fine, Luna! It was an accident!"

"A _delicious_ accident, at that!" Applejack added.

"Come on! Join the fun!" Pinkie scooped up a wad of cake and frosting and flung it at Luna, the wad exploding in her face. She screamed in pain and flung herself to the ground, rolling around and wailing uncontrollably.

Pinkie gasped in horror and ran to her side, saying, "Oh no! Luna, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!" Luna stopped crying as soon as she heard Pinkie's voice, looking up from her hooves with an expression of utter sadness and pain. Pinkie's heart sank at the sight...until Luna flashed a devious grin.

"GOTCHA!"

She smashed a wad of cake into Pinkie's face and joined in the mini foodfight as her sister and friends all laughed and played in the end results of the cake shower. The rest of the crowd laughed along with them and cheered them on, with DJ P0N-3 and Octavia playing a remix of "March Of The Nobles" together to accompany the fight. Pinkie's sense had been proven right once again...but this time, the only thing getting hurt was everypony's ribs from their laughter.

* * *

><p><em>Dear Princess Celestia:<em>

_Accidents can and do happen, and they happen every day. Some can be more severe than others, something that my friend Fluttershy found out the hard way. But with Pinkie Pie's help, she was able to put her feelings of sadness and regret behind her. Sometimes, when we're feeling down, all we need is the comfort and reassurance of our friends to lift us up and let us know that everything's going to be okay._

_Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle._

* * *

><p>"Hey Rarity!" Spike exclaimed. "Don't you wanna join in?"<p>

"I don't know, Spike...I just had my mane done, and I don't want it to get messed up."

"Oh, that's okay. I'll just make sure to avoid it!" Spike mashed a piece of cake into Rarity's face, covering it in frosting and chocolate. Rarity gasped in fright and wiped it off as Spike laughed at his deception. _Oh, so this is a joke? Well, two can play at this game,_ she thought. She walked towards the edge of the foodfight and scooped up a big chunk of cake that nopony had noticed, calling out Spike's name.

"Come here, Spike! I have a present for you!"

"Really?" he exclaimed as he dashed to her side. "What is it?"

Rarity used her magic to lift the cake over Spike's head and dropped it on him without warning, smiling as she said, "There! Now we're even." As the cake fell all around him, he scooped up a chunk of it and took a bite, exclaiming, "Mmm! This cake is delicious! You want some?"

"No thanks, Spike. I'm trying to watch my figure."

"Suit yourself! You don't know what you're missing!" He dabbed a tiny bit of frosting onto Rarity's nose as he continued to munch on the cake, while she turned to look at her friends having fun in the mess they'd made. She looked at Spike, at her hair, at the good time everypony was having, and exclaimed, "Oh, the heck with it! HERE COMES RARITY!" She dashed into the fray and joined in the fun, laughing and carrying on as Spike made his way to the front of the crowd.

"Rolling around in cake and frosting," he said to himself. "That is so degrading." He scooped up another handful of cake and began to munch on it as he cheered his friends on, laughing along with them and loving every minute of it.


End file.
